Vero Beach homes to be evacuated as workers search for remnants of World War II military training

Efforts are being made to find any remaining beach obstacles and other material used to train for WW II amphibious operations. Video by Tim Shortt. Posted 7/26/17

The military trained thousands of soldiers for D-Day invasion at Fort Pierce, leaving behind munitions. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is still searching for munitions there some 75 years later.(Photo11: National Archives)

VERO BEACH — Dozens of residences will be evacuated Thursday as the Army Corps of Engineers searches for remains that might have been left behind during World War II-era military training exercises.

"We've identified these areas where we know the military used the site for practice," said Amanda Parker, a spokeswoman for the Corps. "We've done a number of investigations out in this area and this is just a continuation of that."

Parker said Army Corps workers have been mapping with what is essentially a high-tech metal detector the area that was home to the Fort Pierce Naval Amphibious Training Base. The site stretched nearly 20,000 acres from Vero Beach to near Jensen Beach.

The mapping revealed a number of sites workers will carefully dig up.

Thursday will be the first in a series of targeted digs scheduled over the next two months, she said.

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Members of a specialized Navy bomb disposal unit out of Jacksonville decide the best course of action Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2017, to get a World War II-era torpedo found in the Ocean Ridge subdivision south of Vero Beach to the water. The bomb was found Monday while a construction crew was working on a new home site. The team took the bomb out to sea, submerged and detonated the explosive. PATRICK DOVE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS

A specialized Navy bomb disposal unit from Jacksonville came to Vero Beach to dispose of a World War-era torpedo that was uncovered during construction on a home site near the beach. PATRICK DOVE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS

A specialized Navy bomb disposal unit from Jacksonville came to Vero Beach to dispose of a World War-era torpedo that was uncovered during construction on a home site near the beach. PATRICK DOVE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS

A specialized Navy bomb disposal unit from Jacksonville came to Vero Beach to dispose of a World War-era torpedo that was uncovered during construction on a home site near the beach. PATRICK DOVE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS

A specialized Navy bomb disposal unit from Jacksonville came to Vero Beach to dispose of a World War-era torpedo that was uncovered during construction on a home site near the beach. PATRICK DOVE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS

A specialized Navy bomb disposal unit from Jacksonville came to Vero Beach to dispose of a World War-era torpedo that was uncovered during construction on a home site near the beach. PATRICK DOVE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS

All homes within the red and yellow shaded areas will be evacuated Wednesday while officials detonate what appeared to be a torpedo found Monday by a contractor building a home in the Ocean Ridge subdivision. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO FROM INDIAN RIVER COUNTY EMERGENCY SERVICES DEPARTMENT

A home construction crew unearthed a vintage World War II explosive on Monday, Jan. 17, 2017, south of Vero Beach, bringing work to a halt until Navy officials can determine what to do with it. The explosive is just one on a list of vintage munitions that have surfaced over the years, left behind from the Naval Amphibious Training Base. PATRICK DOVE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS

Through the years, bombs, rockets and mines have been unearthed by construction, erosion and targeted searches offshore and on the barrier islands.

Most recently, a construction crew unearthed a large rocket, known as a Tiny Tim, in January 2017. It was towed far out in the ocean and detonated underwater.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission are consulted to ensure vulnerable species in coastal ecosystems, like sea turtles and whales, are protected during digs and detonations.

Where to go

Thursday's evacuees may visit Country Inn & Suites, 9330 19th Lane in Indian River County, near I-95, where food, internet, TV and pool access will be provided.

December 3, 1996 - Navy and Indian River County Fire Rescue personnel drag what was thought to be a 40-50 year-old rocket containing a live warhead out of the ocean near the Sandpointe area which was blown up at sea. The rocket, which was identified by Navy officers as a "Tiny Tim" rocket from either WWII or the Korean conflict, was dug out of 3 feet of sand, attached to a floating device and taken about three-quarters of a mile offshore where it was detonated in 20-30 feet of water.(Photo11: Kelly Rogers/Press Journal)

Pat Blackburn moved in 2009 to a home in the 900 block of Oyster Shell Lane, in a lagoonside section of Castaway Cove. Her backyard is just south of Lantana Lane, where one of the digs will take place.

Blackburn plans to take her dog to the pet resort, while she stays out of the house.

"I have some errands and if I need to, I'll run by the hotel and chillax until we can go back home," she said.

She said workers wearing bright yellow walked the area Monday distributing packets of information and speaking with residents. She appreciated the abundance of caution, despite the minor inconvenience.

"I've visited the Navy SEAL museum (in Fort Pierce) a lot with my family, so it's kind of interesting. You wonder what they were thinking," Blackburn laughed.

"I'm concerned enough that I'm not going to stick around. But I'm not moving or selling my house or anything."

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